Irreligious Conduct in the Name of Religion

others, by contrast, is a genuine expression of obedience to God’s religion. The account concerning Aisha Siddiqah may be found in my Quran commentary, Tazkir al-Quran, and in other commentaries under Chapter 24. There is therefore no need to repeat the details here. It is important to remember that Aisha was widely respected in Madinah and was known as a woman of impeccable character. Her whole life was devoted to God’s cause. Yet some people seized upon a single incident, turned it into a scandal and used it to damage her reputation. These same people had never spoken of her valuable religious contribution. Their gatherings were so silent about Aisha and her work that it seemed as though neither she nor her services existed in Madinah. But the moment they found an incident that could be misrepresented and used against her, their entire group sprang into action. They used every means at their disposal to spread the fabricated story. They passed it from person to person and tried to create suspicion about Aisha. Eventually, they filled the whole of Madinah with rumours and mistrust. In their own eyes, they were merely passing on news of an “incident.” In the sight of God, however, they were committing a grave offence. They were not serving the